(CNN) - Herman Cain said he made a mistake Tuesday when he said he could see himself negotiating with al-Qaeda if he were elected president.

"I misspoke," Cain told Anderson Cooper immediately following the CNN Western Republican Debate in Las Vegas. "Because I didn't, you know, things are moving so fast, I misspoke. I would not do that, I simply would not do that."FULL POST

Hopkinton, New Hampshire (CNN) - Though former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman didn't join his GOP opponents on stage Tuesday night, he did open his dueling New Hampshire town hall by unleashing a string of pointed one-liners.

Huntsman, who is pinning his presidential hopes on New Hampshire, boycotted the CNN Western Republican debate in Nevada to show his disapproval of that state's caucus date. While the other Republican hopefuls met in Las Vegas, Huntsman hosted a town hall in Hopkinton.FULL POST

Las Vegas (CNN) - Former Godfather's Pizza executive Herman Cain was at the center of a pile-on Tuesday night at the presidential debate hosted by CNN and the Western Republican Leadership Conference, as his GOP rivals took turns picking apart his "9-9-9" plan to reform the United States tax code.

Cain's plan would throw out the current tax system and install a 9% corporate income tax rate, a 9% income tax rate and a 9% national sales taxFULL POST

Las Vegas (CNN) – The CNN Political Ticker is live blogging from the CNN Western Republican Presidential Debate in Las Vegas. Check back here for live updates throughout the event and be sure to follow @PoliticalTicker, @CNNPolitics and use #CNNDebate. Read more here</a

7:10 p.m. PT - @PeterHambyCNN: More Ray Sullivan, on Romney: "He is a very slick guy. That slickness includes the ability to change positions on a dime."
7:09 p.m. PT - @PeterHambyCNN: Perry spox Ray Sullivan: "He is back to running again ... this is a campaign that is in for the long haul."
7:08 p.m. PT - @JohnKingCNN: Govs perry and romney chatted briefly post debate. Romney says "it was fine". I suggest tone preview of tv ad wars: "we'll see". #cnndebate

7:04 p.m. PT - Cain, appearing on CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" after the debate, says he "felt good" about the debate and how he responded to criticism from the other candidates.

6:59 p.m. PT - @CNNPolitics: Go to CNNPolitics.com right now for exclusive #CNNDebate coverage from the Spin Room; send your questions and comments using #CNNPostGame
6:57 p.m. PT – @PeterHambyCNN: Fehrnstrom [Romney adviser]: "Rick Perry came in to kill Mitt, but he killed himself"
6:50 p.m. PT - Romney says they're (he and Cain) both doing well because of their records and then says he turned around main street businesses multiple times in his career.

6:48 p.m. PT - Romney said Massachusetts had a lower unemployment rate while he was governor than Texas did while Perry was governor and that is the record he would mirror as president.

6:47 p.m. PT - Perry says voters should look at Romney's history in Massachusetts, when he was not successful in creating jobs. "You failed as the governor of Massachusetts," Perry said.

6:46 p.m. PT – @PaulBegala: Hey, Rick Santorum. If you're gonna brag about the time you beat me, shouldn't you mention that 6 yrs later I beat YOU? #CNNdebate
6:46 p.m. PT – Romney says his past in the private sector, out of politics is why he will have the support to beat the president in the next election.
6:45 p.m. PT – Santorum says he won Pennsylvania, a swing state, twice and that he is the only candidate on the stage to beat a Democrat in a swing state, signs he will be a strong candidate in 2012.FULL POST

New York (CNNMoney) - Under Herman Cain's 9-9-9 tax reform plan, 84% of U.S. households would pay more than they do under current tax policies, according to a report released Tuesday by a nonpartisan research group.

And the impact would be felt most heavily by the lowest income groups.

(CNN) - The controversial pastor who called Mormonism a "cult" after introducing Rick Perry at a conservative conference is firing back at his critics, saying religion has an important place in presidential politics.

"Hearing Mitt Romney's surrogate Bill Bennett refer to me as a bigot and Jon Huntsman call me a 'moron' last week after my controversial comments on Mormonism, amid calls for civility and tolerance in public discourse, reminds me of the exclamation: 'We will not tolerate intolerance!'" Robert Jeffress wrote in an opinion piece in the Washington Post published Tuesday.FULL POST

Las Vegas, Nevada (CNN) - Reminiscent of college drinking games, the Obama re-election team has come up with a variation to get donors to contribute during Tuesday night's CNN Western Republican Leadership Conference debate.

Donors are asked to choose key words that almost certainly will be mentioned frequently during the debate. A player is asked to pledge $3 or $5 for each mention of a chosen word by one of the candidates who wants to replace President Barack Obama.